RBC exec said to be a "lock" to replace RIM co-chairmen

Royal Bank of Canada executive Barbara Stymiest is reportedly a "lock" to become the new chairwoman at Research in Motion as investors have become increasingly critical of co-chairmen Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie.

Last year, in an effort to appease activist shareholders displeased with RIM's management, the Waterloo, Ont., smartphone maker formed a committee to investigate the company's corporate structure. That committee's report is due at the end of this month, with a response from RIM required 30 days after it is submitted.

John Paczkowski of All Things D noted on Friday that numerous sources have named Stymiest as the most likely replacement for RIM's co-chairmen.

Stymiest is a lock for chairwoman, one insider told the publication. The only thing thats unclear right now is the timeline for her appointment.

A second source noted that a final decision had yet to be reached, while corroborating the likelihood that she will be appointed. Stymiest, who serves as a member of RBC's Group Executive team, has been a director at RIM since 2007.

Analysts generally view the prospect of Stymiest taking the reins as a step in the right direction, though they note that it will take time to turn the company around.

We would view such an announcement positively as we believe she will initiate a formal strategic review, possibly trim costs in the hardware business, and possibly announce additional partnerships; however, we continue to see an outright sale in the near-term as unlikely and see near-term results as challenged, Jefferies analyst Peter Misek told All Things D.

As RIM has struggled in recent years, its co-founders, who serve as both co-CEOs and co-chairmen, have taken the blame for its decline.

Theres a bigger problem than the market share erosion and product delays, one analyst told the publication off the record. Its Mike and Jim.

2011 was a particularly harsh year for the BlackBerry maker. The company reduced its workforce in order to cut costs, saw its entry into the tablet market flop and faced delays to the new smartphone OS that it has hailed as its salvation.

After last quarter's lackluster quarterly results, which included a $485 million charge due to excess PlayBook inventory, Balsillie and Lazaridis cut their salaries to $1 and apologized for the company's performance.

We ask for your patience and confidence, Lazaridis said during a conference call with analysts last December. We realize we've not met expectations.

At the time, National Bank Financial analyst Kris Thompson viewed the BlackBerry 10 delay as potentially "the final nail in RIM's coffin," adding that a turnaround is "very, very speculative."

RIM's crumbling stock price has attracted the attention of interested buyers. The company shed more than 70 percent of its market value last year, prompting one analyst to speculate that Apple's App Store alone was worth more than all of RIM. Reports have suggested that online retail giant Amazon had approached BlackBerry about an acquisition, but RIM was said to have turned down the offers.

Related note: It's kind of sad how far RIM has fallen...when the iPhone was released they were in a real position to take advantage of this new superphone market (due to their vertical nature) but instead, like microsoft, refused to grow and allowed a relatively unfinished Android to take hold even though I feel it finally matured with the release of 4.0.

There is nothing to gain by spitting on a company on its way down. Nothing original. Nothing intelligent. Nothing constructive.

As consumers, we should hope for RIM's revival and hence greater competition, which will push everyone to produce better products for us. As compassionate human beings, we should consider that thousands and thousands of families will be rather adversely affected.

Related note: It's kind of sad how far RIM has fallen...when the iPhone was released they were in a real position to take advantage of this new superphone market (due to their vertical nature) but instead, like microsoft, refused to grow and allowed a relatively unfinished Android to take hold even though I feel it finally matured with the release of 4.0.

To be fair to RIM, they're not the only erstwhile incumbent to have been upended. Look at Nokia. Look at Microsoft. Look at Palm. Look at Sony-Erickson.

There is nothing to gain by spitting on a company on its way down. Nothing original. Nothing intelligent. Nothing constructive.

I don't think anyone wants to see any company or product fail but I think RIM and their co-CEOs have displayed an astonishing capacity for hubris over the last couple of years and, as a result, have practically invited people to dance on the company's grave. Seriously, you don't dismiss your competitors as "amateur hour" when you're getting your ass handed to you. A little humility and a real effort to take the changes in the smartphone market seriously would have gone a long way.

Quote:

Originally Posted by stelligent

As consumers, we should hope for RIM's revival and hence greater competition, which will push everyone to produce better products for us. As compassionate human beings, we should consider that thousands and thousands of families will be rather adversely affected.

Anyone at RIM right now who has talent and creativity (and doubtless there are many despite the apparent fact that their leadership isn't listening to any of them) will have no trouble leveraging their time at RIM to find a better job elsewhere. Despite the last couple of years, having RIM on your resume is a good thing. It's not the end of the world for their employees.

What the hell does a banking exec know about running a tech company? Especially in the hyper-competitive mobile devices / ecosystem market.

Apparently more than the current guys.

The mistakes made were typical business mistakes, like taking several years to even begin to respond to the threat posed by iPhone and then making a lot of dumb-ass mistakes in terms of basic implementation followed by setting unrealistic expectations and then crowing all about how great your stuff was when it clearly wasn't. It's not their strategy that the board disagrees with (so far), it's just their business performance.

Even though this is a good move though it's far to late for RIM. They may try to get that "London" phone out the door, but if that doesn't wow the market right out of the gate, they will be out of the phone hardware market in a year or two. They've already left the tablet hardware market.

I don't think anyone wants to see any company or product fail but I think RIM and their co-CEOs have displayed an astonishing capacity for hubris over the last couple of years and, as a result, have practically invited people to dance on the company's grave. Seriously, you don't dismiss your competitors as "amateur hour" when you're getting your ass handed to you. A little humility and a real effort to take the changes in the smartphone market seriously would have gone a long way.

Anyone at RIM right now who has talent and creativity (and doubtless there are many despite the apparent fact that their leadership isn't listening to any of them) will have no trouble leveraging their time at RIM to find a better job elsewhere. Despite the last couple of years, having RIM on your resume is a good thing. It's not the end of the world for their employees.

End of the world? No. But getting an equivalent job in this market, regardless of talent, is not as easy as it once was. Certainly not easy without moving. Again, not end of the world but families will be adversely affected unless the company turns around. So why not root for that scenario. It would be a win-win-win. Win for the industry. Win for consumers. Win for RIM employees. Any other sentiment would be akin to piling on.

Let me guess, the first thing this RBC exec will do will be "restructuring".

Never mind actually stopping to think what the heck is it BlackBerry is anymore.

Is Canada stuck in the early 2000's or what?

It's like that episode on How I Met Your Mother... Where a certain character's aversion to shopping malls is revealed. To jump to the chase, one of the best lines in the episode, brutal but funny, is... "The 80's didn't come to Canada until the 90's" :

Let me guess, the first thing this RBC exec will do will be "restructuring".

There you go, I read the article, the first thing she will do is "she will initiate a formal strategic review".

Formal

Strategic

Review

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.
.
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HALLELUJAH PRAISE THE GAWDS! RIM IS SAVED!

In all fairness if RIM is not completely toast in five years and she is still in charge, then I take my hat off to her and will eat my words. From my armchair though, the odds are not good.

Quote:

possibly trim costs in the hardware business

Yes it's all too easy to pile on RIM... You mean it's been costing them a lot to churn out nonsense? I feel for the engineers but as the open letter from the RIM employee mentions, it's also the management that has gone awry. If it is costing them 120% of x dollars to make stuff that's outdated and unattractive, what will 50% of x dollars do? Half a Playbook?!

Clearly the problem is the co-chairmen, co-CEOs, the board and a ton of other things only the underlings at RIM know, which isn't public yet. "Immolation" is probably the only thing that will save them. I feel for the people that are going to or are close to losing their jobs... But as someone said, hey, if you've been working at RIM I guess you've been paid to look for another job for at least a year now.

I sound brutal but something is very, very fishy. First the open letter. Then the "committee review" or whatever. Then the review recommends a new Chairperson which they think will first do... wait for it... ANOTHER REVIEW. Only thing this time it is "strategic". Oh and they are going to cut costs. Because that will definitely help them make more sales, right? Oh wait...

It took a doctor (okay, psychiatrist) to tell me the first time I heard it: Common sense is not common.

That's why some people, when trying to rebel, actually do things others may not expect but innately enjoy. Weird, isn't it.

I sat through half an hour of ads and trailers before the movie came on today at a local cinema. Not a good sign for the cinema industry. 15 minutes, I understand. But half an hour is pushing it. Piracy and online distribution... Well, let's face it, piracy... has ripped apart the movie industry. As for BlackBerry though, I'm not sure who they can blame but themselves.

I guess what irks me is not mismanagement but this has clearly gone into the realm of outright fraudulence.

The mistakes made were typical business mistakes, like taking several years to even begin to respond to the threat posed by iPhone and then making a lot of dumb-ass mistakes in terms of basic implementation followed by setting unrealistic expectations and then crowing all about how great your stuff was when it clearly wasn't. It's not their strategy that the board disagrees with (so far), it's just their business performance.

Even though this is a good move though it's far to late for RIM. They may try to get that "London" phone out the door, but if that doesn't wow the market right out of the gate, they will be out of the phone hardware market in a year or two. They've already left the tablet hardware market.

I agree. Jimbal was dreaming of owning hockey time in Canada while Stevie was dreaming of how to improve life for mankind knowing he might not have much time left...And to think that I supported Jimbal's quest initially until signs of neglect for his company started to appear...Sigh, I'm afraid it's already too late.

I sat through half an hour of ads and trailers before the movie came on today at a local cinema. Not a good sign for the cinema industry. 15 minutes, I understand. But half an hour is pushing it. Piracy and online distribution... Well, let's face it, piracy... has ripped apart the movie industry.

I don't even understand 15 minutes. Show me one trailer if you must, but I paid to watch the movie. If I'd wanted to watch commercials I'd have stayed home and turned on the TV.

Same thing with those shiny discs you offer for sale at my local big box retailer. If I buy a disc and discover that I can't skip the 10-15 minutes of commercials at the beginning then I'm going to find an alternate source for your next film.

As for RIM, they couldn't have picked a better person to come in and be stymied by the situation.